The Crescenta Valley Water District has bagged two more multimillion-dollar settlements from oil companies that officials claim leaked a contaminant into the local groundwater supply. So far, the district has penned three settlement agreements totaling $12.5 million, according to U.S. District Court records. The latest is a $4-million agreement with ConocoPhillips, which is set to be reviewed by a federal judge next month. In January, U.S. District Judge Josephine Staton Tucker approved another $4-million settlement, this time with BP, court documents show.

I am no conservative Republican, but I strongly disagree with Jerry Lane's take on gasoline prices. 1. Many cars do indeed require higher-octane fuels. In any case, eliminating different octane levels would be unlikely to reduce the price of regular-octane fuel, since the higher cost of having three grades is already borne by those who purchase the two higher grades. 2. Why shouldn't oil companies charge what the market will bear? Do we hear people fuming when avocados or strawberries have a 50% seasonal price increase?

Three candidates vying to fill a vacant seat in the 43rd Assembly District faced off in a bilingual forum Sunday that featured perspectives on the state budget, the economy and the Armenian Genocide. The Assembly hopefuls were non-confrontational while expressing their often starkly different takes on solving state challenges, with one calling for cuts to regulations while another pushed for passing new laws to stimulate growth. “We are the only state that doesn’t tax the oil companies that drill,” Democrat Nayiri Nahabedian, a member of the Glendale Unified School District Board of Education, said in response to a question about how to improve funding for education.

Re: Ms. Gutierrez's Oct. 14 commentary, "What the market will bear isn't a good barometer." Obviously, Ms. Gutierrez does not "discern" (her word, not mine) that the marketplace does indeed control prices. She goes to great lengths to compare utility prices with rent rates, but she fails to note that a person has no choice in utility companies, whereas there is choice in where you live. You can even stay in Glendale, because the majority of owners choose to keep their rents at a level where they don't have vacancies.

We all feel it when gas prices spike. It's a pattern every four years that coincides with elections. Israel threatens to strike Iran, Iran threatens to block oil shipments and presidential candidates spew inflammatory rhetoric. Suddenly, oil companies see a windfall opportunity with prices spiking - a dollar per-gallon in the last month alone. What is different this time is that as a result of our economy, a lot of people have lost their jobs, and those who still have a job haven't seen a raise in years.

The House of Representatives reached a deal this week on a Democratic-sponsored plan to ease offshore bans on drilling for oil with tepid support from area lawmakers. Under the plan, adopted Tuesday by a 236-189 party-line vote, large oil and gas companies would lose certain tax benefits, homeowners would receive some incentives for energy-efficient construction, and drilling that had been outlawed off the Pacific and Atlantic coasts could be open for business. The “Comprehensive Energy Plan,” H.R. 6899, promises $5.3 billion for the nation’s strategic energy reserve to allow increased investment in renewable energy and dictates that utilities must provide 15% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020.

An idea on socking it to oil companies I've got a great idea on how to bring the oil companies to their knees. Now that the national boycott was staged on Monday ("Locals engage in boycotts," Tuesday), which coincided with May Day, and most obviously included revolutionaries and anarchists waving the flags of various nations and the likes of Che Guevara, let's gather our forces and do this: I propose giving all employees the day off with pay so they can stay home or do whatever they wish without the use of their automobiles.

JERRY LANE "In this world, nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes." That's what Benjamin Franklin wrote back in 1789. Had he lived another 150 years, he may have added "and the rising price of gasoline." Beginning on Jan. 1 of this year, we set up a program on our computer to record what we are paying in "silent taxes" -- those taxes that the Internal Revenue Service allows us a standard deduction for on our income tax without exacting a precise accounting.

The Crescenta Valley Water District has bagged two more multimillion-dollar settlements from oil companies that officials claim leaked a contaminant into the local groundwater supply. So far, the district has penned three settlement agreements totaling $12.5 million, according to U.S. District Court records. The latest is a $4-million agreement with ConocoPhillips, which is set to be reviewed by a federal judge next month. In January, U.S. District Judge Josephine Staton Tucker approved another $4-million settlement, this time with BP, court documents show.

We all feel it when gas prices spike. It's a pattern every four years that coincides with elections. Israel threatens to strike Iran, Iran threatens to block oil shipments and presidential candidates spew inflammatory rhetoric. Suddenly, oil companies see a windfall opportunity with prices spiking - a dollar per-gallon in the last month alone. What is different this time is that as a result of our economy, a lot of people have lost their jobs, and those who still have a job haven't seen a raise in years.

Candidates for a vacant seat in the 43rd Assembly District clashed Thursday in the final forum before the Tuesday election, taking positions on tax increases, spending cuts and the Legislature’s procedure for approving a budget. The forum, televised and hosted by The Larry Zarian Show and co-sponsored by the Glendale News-Press, brought all four hopefuls onto a panel to answer questions that delved into each candidate’s background and stance on state issues. On the issue of the state’s projected $19-billion budget deficit, Democrats Nayiri Nahabedian and Mike Gatto argued that options for tax increases, perhaps on high wage earners or major corporations, should be included as part of a solution.

Three candidates vying to fill a vacant seat in the 43rd Assembly District faced off in a bilingual forum Sunday that featured perspectives on the state budget, the economy and the Armenian Genocide. The Assembly hopefuls were non-confrontational while expressing their often starkly different takes on solving state challenges, with one calling for cuts to regulations while another pushed for passing new laws to stimulate growth. “We are the only state that doesn’t tax the oil companies that drill,” Democrat Nayiri Nahabedian, a member of the Glendale Unified School District Board of Education, said in response to a question about how to improve funding for education.

The House of Representatives reached a deal this week on a Democratic-sponsored plan to ease offshore bans on drilling for oil with tepid support from area lawmakers. Under the plan, adopted Tuesday by a 236-189 party-line vote, large oil and gas companies would lose certain tax benefits, homeowners would receive some incentives for energy-efficient construction, and drilling that had been outlawed off the Pacific and Atlantic coasts could be open for business. The “Comprehensive Energy Plan,” H.R. 6899, promises $5.3 billion for the nation’s strategic energy reserve to allow increased investment in renewable energy and dictates that utilities must provide 15% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020.

An idea on socking it to oil companies I've got a great idea on how to bring the oil companies to their knees. Now that the national boycott was staged on Monday ("Locals engage in boycotts," Tuesday), which coincided with May Day, and most obviously included revolutionaries and anarchists waving the flags of various nations and the likes of Che Guevara, let's gather our forces and do this: I propose giving all employees the day off with pay so they can stay home or do whatever they wish without the use of their automobiles.

JERRY LANE "In this world, nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes." That's what Benjamin Franklin wrote back in 1789. Had he lived another 150 years, he may have added "and the rising price of gasoline." Beginning on Jan. 1 of this year, we set up a program on our computer to record what we are paying in "silent taxes" -- those taxes that the Internal Revenue Service allows us a standard deduction for on our income tax without exacting a precise accounting.

Re: Ms. Gutierrez's Oct. 14 commentary, "What the market will bear isn't a good barometer." Obviously, Ms. Gutierrez does not "discern" (her word, not mine) that the marketplace does indeed control prices. She goes to great lengths to compare utility prices with rent rates, but she fails to note that a person has no choice in utility companies, whereas there is choice in where you live. You can even stay in Glendale, because the majority of owners choose to keep their rents at a level where they don't have vacancies.

This is in reply to Greg McKay's letter that appeared in the Glendale News-Press on April 1. I don't know how avocados and strawberries got mixed up with oil and gas prices. When the prices of these two items become outrageously high, I shop around for better prices or I do without them completely. I can find suitable substitutes for just about any food item. There is no edible commodity I absolutely must have. If I were in the market for a home, I would consider the asking price very carefully.